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The Court of Appeal, Owerri Division in Imo State, on Tuesday, in a unanimous ruling, struck out a motion for leave to appeal as an interested party, filed by Dr Uche Ogah to challenge the judgment of a High Court of Abia State over the all Progressives Congress (APC) governorship ticket.
The matter is in respect of suit No HUM-31-2022: CHIEF IKECHI EMENIKE VS APC AND two others, delivered on June 24, 2022, in favour of CHIEF IKECHI EMENIKE.
Emenike approached the Abia court in the suit to determine whether he, having emerged as the candidate of APC In the primary election conducted by the party in June 2022, the party, could refuse to submit his name to INEC as the candidate of the party.
It is also whether the commission, upon the party submitting or uploading his name in her portal, could decline to publish his name as the candidate of APC for the 2023 gubernatorial election in Abia, among other issues for determination.
The Abia state high court in the said judgment found for High Chief Ikechi Emenike. The court mandated APC to upload his name to INEC’s portal as its candidate.
The court equally ordered INEC to accept his name as uploaded and publish the same as the candidate of APC for the gubernatorial election in Abia, in the 2023 general election.
Above all, the court restrained INEC from accepting or publishing the name of any other person as the candidate of APC in the said election other than Emenike.
Uche Ogah, who was not a party to the suit at the trial court and who did not participate in the primary of APC had approached the court of Appeal in CA-OW-243M-2022, a motion on notice for leave to appeal against the said judgment as an interested party.
The counsel of Emenike and the APC opposed the motion on grounds that the Court of Appeal lacked the jurisdiction to hear and determine the same in that the motion was filed outside 14 days period stipulated in section 285 (11) of the 1999 constitution as amended for filing of an appeal in pre-election cases.
The appellant court upheld the preliminary objection against the motion and ruled that:
“The motion for leave filed by Uche Ogah as the Applicant was filed out of time (14) days as provided for and by section 285(11) of the constitution of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and accordingly incompetent. That the Applicant Uche Ogah did not approach the court with clean hands.”
In consequence of the above holding, the motion was struck out for want of jurisdiction or vires.
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